Assembly of bags



y 18, 1955 F. A. DAVIS ETAL 3,184,055

ASSEMBLY OF BAGS Original Filed Sept. 19, 1961 INVENTORS FRANCIS A. DAVIS JR BY JOSEPH F. FLANNERY United States Patent 3,184,055 ASSEMBLY OF BAGS Francis A. Davis, Jr., Lansdale, and Joseph F. Flannery, Philadelphia, Pa., assignors to Paramount Packaging Corporation, Chaliont, ha, a corporation of Pennsylvauia Original application Sept. 19, 1961, Ser. No. 139,234. Divided and this application Jan. 9, 1963, Ser. No.

3 Claims. c1. ass-s7 This application is a division of our copending application Serial No. 139,234 filed on September 19, 1961, and entitled Plastic Bag Cutter.

This invention relates to an assembly of bags and, more particularly, to a stack of novel bags particularly orientated and retained in an assembled disposition for ready attachment to a packaging machine by means of a wicket.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a novel article of manufacture comprising an assembly of bags structurally interrelated in a particular manner.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an assembly of bags retained in an assembled relationship by means of a wicket for ready attachment to a packaging machine when a previous assembly of bags has been consumed by a filling operation.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an assembly of bags wherein each bag is provided with a flap adjacent an open end of the bag, with a wicket extending through an incision in each flap thereby retaining the assembly of bags in an assembled disposition for ready attachment to a packaging machine.

Other objects will appear hereinafter.

'For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings a form which is presently preferred; it being understood, however, that this invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown.

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of a bag in accordance with the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a partial perspective view of a stack of bags of the type illustrated in FIGURE 1 interconnected in an assembled disposition by means of a wicket.

FIGURE 3 is a partial perspective view of the stack of bags in FIGURE 2 during one stage of the method of packaging materials into the bags.

Referring to the drawing in detail, wherein like numerals indicate like elements, there is shown in FIGURE 1 a bag designated generally as it The bag 10 is open at one end and has top and bottom walls 12 and 14 interconnected along their side edges by welds 18 and 20. The bag 19 may be made from a sheet of material overlapped on itself by the provision of a fold line 16 thereby defining the closed end of the bag.

If desired, the bag it? may be made from two sheets superimposed over one another. If the bag 10 is formed in this manner, a weld will be placed along the end of the bag corresponding to the fold line 16. The bag it) is preferably made from a thin thermoplastic material such as polyethylene. If desired, the thermoplastic material from which the bag It is comprised may be transparent.

The bag 10, having an open end opposite the fold line 16, is slightly longer than the bag in its filled disposition as will be made clear hereinafter. The bag it is provided with a flap 22 at its open end. The flap 22 is preferably an extension of one of the major walls of the bag it As shown more clearly in FIGURE 3, the flap 22 is an extension of wall '14.

The flap 22 is provided with at least one incision. As illustrated, flap 22 is provided with incisions 24 and 25. Such incisions may be provided by the apparatus disclosed in our above-mentioned copendin-g application. It will be 3,.l84fi55 Patented May 18, 1%65 Ice noted that the ilap 22 is provided with an incision rather than an aperture. 'If an aperture were provided in the flap 22, this would result in the production of a small punched out piece of the flap 22 which could be intermingled with the ultimate contents of the bag 10' to contaminate the same.

As shown more clearly in FIGURE 2, there is provided a stack 28 of bags 10. Each of the bags 18 is orientated with respect to each other so that the flaps 2.2, are disposed one above the other. The flaps are orientated with respect to each other so that the incisions 24 and 26 are in line with corresponding incisions on other flaps. The bags 10 of the stack 28 are maintained in an assembled disposition by means of a wicket 30. The wicket 30 includes a leg 32 extending through each of the incisions 26 and a leg 34- extending through each of the incisions 24. Each of the legs 32 and 34- rnay terminate in a knob 36. It will be appreciated that the stack 28 may include a larger number of bags it) than that which is illustrated in FIGURE 2 whereby the height of the stack 2% may correspond generally with the length of the legs 32 and 34.

The stack 28 with the wicket maintaining the individual bags in an assembled disposition is sold commercially as an article of manufacture to those persons engaged in packaging materials. When in use, the assembly of bags is used as follows:

.A stack of bags 2% having a wicket extending through the incisions as illustrated in FIGURE 2 will be mounted on a packaging machine with a support member of the machine retaining the knobs 36. In this position, the bags are supported for filling. The top bag 19 will have the wall 12 spaced from the wall 14, as illustrated in FIG- URE 3, in any convenient manner such as by directing a stream of air toward the open end of the bag. Thereafter, the material to be packaged in the bag 1% will be inserted through the open end. During the filling operation, the bag 10 will be pulled away from the legs 32 and 34- alcng one of the lines of the incisions 24 and 26, thereby exposing the next bag of the stack 28 for filling in like manner.

After the bags v1t} have been filled as aforesaid, the torn flap 22 is removed by a heat-sealing process which closes the open end of the bag. Due to the nature of the thin thermoplastic material, the bag may be easily torn away from the wicket during the filling operation.

The assembly of bags in accordance with the present invention facilitates the more rapid filling of bags. It will be appreciated that as soon as a stack 28 is utilized, the Wicket which was associated with the previous stack will be removed and a new stack and wicket will be substituted therefor. This substitution may be accomplished readily so that little time is lost during the packaging operation.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof and, accordingly, reference should be made to the appended claims, rather than to the foregoing specification as indicating the scope of the invention.

We claim:

1. An assembly of bags wherein the uppermost bag may be subjected to air to open the same, comprising a stack of bags made from a thin thermoplastic material capable of being heat sealed, each bag having an open end and a flap extending from a major wall at the open end, each bag having a closed end opposite its open end, said flaps being disposed one above the other and separated from one another, the closed ends of said bags being disposed one above the other, each flap having a pair of intersecting incisions disposed on opposite sides of a median line directed from the closed end to the open end of each bag and spaced from the free edge of said flap, said assembly of bags being mounted on a pair of spaced posts of a U- shaped wicket, each of said posts passing through one of 0 Q3 said incisions with the bags being disposed on said posts in such relationship that each bag may be removed from bag and the uppermost bag may be torn from said posts.

-2. An assembly of bags wherein the uppermost bag may be subjected to air to open the same, comprising a stack of bags rn'ade'from a thin thermoplastic material capable of being heat sealed, each bag having an open end and a I flap extending from a major wall at the open end, each v bag having a closed end opposite its open end, said flaps being disposed one above the other and separated from a one another, the closed ends of said bags being disposed one above the other, each flap having a pair of incisions spaced above the free edge of said flap opposite the bags closed end, said assembly of bags being mounted on a pair of spaced posts of a U-shaped wicket, each of said posts passing through one of said incisions with the bags being disposed on said posts in such a relationship that each bag may be removed from said posts by tearing the flap upon the movement of the bags from the incisions toward said free edge, each incision permitting its respective bag to be moved with respect to the posts whereby the bags may be slightly misaligned with respect to one another, said assembly of bags being arranged for ready attachment to a packaging machine wherein air will open the uppermost bag and the uppermost bag may be torn from said posts.

3. An assembly of bags wherein the uppermost bag may be subjected to air to open the same, comprising a stack of bags made from a thin thermoplastic material capable of being heat sealed, each bag having an open end and a flap extending from a major wall at the open end, each ,bag having a closed end opposite its open end, said flaps being disposed one above the other and separated from one another, the closed ends of said bags being disposed one above the other, each flap having a pair of incisions spaced from the free edge of said flap opposite the bags closed end, said incisions being on opposite sides of a median line directed from the closed end to the open end of each of said bags, each incision being defined by at least two slits which meet at a common point between the ends of one of the slits, the other slit extending toward the flap free edge, said assembly of bags being mounted on a pair of spaced posts, each of said posts passing through one of said incisions with the bags being disposed on said posts in such relationship that each bag may be removedtfrom said posts by tearing the flap upon move ment of the bag from the incision toward said free edge, said assembly of bags being arranged for ready attachment to a packaging machine wherein air will open the uppermost bag and the uppermost bag may be torn from said posts.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,208,726 7/ 40 'Kurth 1129-21 2,259,358 a 10/ 4-1 Templeton 2 821l.5 2,704,599 3/55 Tuttle et al. 2()657 2,727,550 12/55 Montessi 150-39 2,962, 157 ill/'60 Mcister 150-52 2,997, 167 8/61 Westfall 2065 7 3,008,569 11/6 1 Murch 20619.5 3,021,947 2/62 Sylvester et al 20657 3;,(l 4l'p233 7/ -62 Altman 20657 3, 100,5 69 8/ 63 White 20657 FOREIGN PATENTS 45,498 1896 Great Britain.

THERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner.

EARLE I. DRUMMOND, GEORGE O. RALSTON,

' Examiners. 

1. AN ASSEMBLY OF BAGS WHEREIN THE UPPERMOST BAG MAY BE SUBJECTED TO AIR TO OPEN THE SAME, COMPRISING A STACK OF BAGS MADE FROM A THIN THERMOPLASTIC MATERIAL CAPABLE OF BEING HEAT SEALED, EACH BAG HAVING AN OPEN END AND A FLAP EXTENDING FROM A MAJOR WALL AT THE OPEN END, EACH BAG HAVING A CLOSED END OPPOSITE ITS OPEN END, SAID FLAPS BEING DISPOSED ONE ABOVE THE OTHER AND SEPARATED FROM ONE ANOTHER, THE CLOSED ENDS OF SAID BAGS BEING DISPOSED ONE ABOVE THE OTHER, EACH FLAP HAVING A PAIR OF INTERSECTING INCISIONS DISPOSED ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF A MEDIAN LINE DIRECTED FROM THE CLOSED END TO THE OPEN END OF EACH BAG AND SPACED FROM THE FREE EDGE OF SAID FLAP, SAID ASSEMBLY OF BAGS BEING MOUNTED ON A PAIR OF SPACED POSTS OF A USHAPED WICKET, EACH OF SAID POSTS PASSING THROUGH ONE OF SAID INCISIONS WITH THE BAGS BEING DISPOSED ON SAID POSTS IN SUCH RELATIONSHIP THAT EACH BAG MAY BE REMOVED FROM SAID POSTS BY TEARING THE FLAP UPON THE MOVEMENT OF SAID BAG FROM THE INCISIONS TOWARD SAID FREE EDGE, SAID ASSEMBLY OF BAGS BEING ARRANGED FOR READY ATTACHMENT TO A PACKAGING MACHINE WHEREIN AIR WILL OPEN THE UPPERMOST BAG AND THE UPPERMOST BAG MAY BE TORN FROM SAID POSTS. 